Airfare secrets/Places to stay
 

Hi
I need to know if any of you savvy world travelers know any secrets for low airfare. I'm in Texas and would like to fly to NY near the 1st part of August. Also, what's the best way to stay for less. I am a student, thus, I am extremely low on cash. Any suggestions would be Godsend.

From TX, hmmm? How did you vote in the last election?

Priceline.com has always worked great for me for getting great hotel deals. Go to BiddingForTravel.com to learn how to use Priceline effectively.

Andrew

kayak.com
mobissimo.com

are good places to look for airfare. Then buy direct from the airline. Flying on a weekday vs. Fri/Sat/Sun often (but not always)is cheaper. Be very careful about using Priceline for airfare. I don't think they include taxes in the bid price which can be significant. Times of flights can also cause you to lose 2 days. Priceline is great for hotels though. YOu can get a 4* hotel for as little as $100/night plus tax. Works best for shorter stays.

There are also hostels. Some have private rooms in addition to dorms. There are also plenty of places (inns, b & bs and hotels) with shared baths that are much cheaper. The Larchmont is a decent hotel in Greenwich Village (near NYU) with all shared baths. Reviews for most hotels on tripadvisor.com. Don't stay anywhere without checking there first.
I hope you're over 21. Many hotels don't allow under 21s.

Use travelocity's fare watcher feature - it lets you know the cheapest fair available, although it might not apply to your dates.

I'm really liking www.airfarewatchdog.com - we were recently alerted to some great tickets to Orlando through this e-newsletter.

Where in Texas are you? I'm asking because Jetblue flies from Phoenix and Austin to New York and their fares are really good.

http://www.jetblue.com/

We're flying with them next week from Burlington, Vermont to NY (we live in Montreal). The price we got is almost 1/3 the price of the tickets from Montreal. I've heard many good reviews about them too.

You are a student - do you know about studentuniverse.com and statravel.com? They both sometimes offer good fares to students but availability can be limited.

If your dates are flexible, you can go to travel.yahoo.com and search by fare rather than by schedule. I've found really cheap deals that way, like $200 to Aruba and $700 to Hawaii (from Philly).

For the most inespensive place to stay go for a hostel. Many european students travel this way and the money saaved allows them to do other things, eat a little better food etc.

The only hostel I'm personally aware of is on 103rd and Amsterdam and the students I've met from there (frequently see them on the street asking directions) seem hapapy with it.

The cost is about $35 per night in a shared (bunk bed I think) room with a secure locker included.

You may also try Priceline - but realize that some 3* hotels are dicey - so you rally need to bid 4* - and I don;t know what bids are being accepted at this point.

I believe there is also some sort of religious (Lutheran I believe) sailors home that rents private room for aobut $85 per night. You might look into that as well.

There is a hostel at 14th and 2nd Ave called Jazz on the Town. It gets somewhat mixed reviews on Tripadvisor, but the location is very convenient (down the street from Union Square) to exploring Manhattan.

topping for airfare tips... thanks

Chelsea Center Hostel (Westside) is on W. 29/8th Ave. and right by Penn Station, Port Authority, a bunch of subways so makes it a convenient choice. I walk by it almost every day and there are always TONS of European college students in and out. It definitely doesn't seem sketchy in the least. Reviews on tripadvisor are mixed (3 out 5):
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev..._New_York.html

but with rooms at $33 a night that the reviews don't seem that bad...

http://www.chelseacenterhostel.com/

Hi-- Just to let you know - you should read my post about hotels and debit cards. This can put a real problem on you if you are on limited funds. I too have booked all my rooms with Hotwire and Priceline. They really have the best deals for rooms and airline tickets too. Have fun..

Well, democratic obviously! And thanks so much for all the help. STATRAVEL had a ticket for 240 roundtrip! You guys are awesome!

I recently got a great fare from Detroit to Key West on www.1800cheapseats.com so you may want to check it out! Travelocity's fares didn't come close to cheapseats!